Commissioners previously approved the demolition of three buildings at that location. Their vote Wednesday adopted city staff recommendations to require the developer to accommodate pedestrian traffic with an entrance centered between two columns instead of a queuing area for vehicles on Houston Street.

Development company Baywood Hotels plans to replace the decaying buildings with a 10-story, 126-room Hilton Garden Inn. Construction should start in the first quarter of next year, with the hotel opening in early 2015, according to a spokesman.

pharmaceuticals

DPT merges with sister company

San Antonio-based DPT Laboratories has combined with a sister pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing company in Canada.

Both DPT and Confab, based in Saint-Hubert, Quebec, are owned by Renaissance Acquisition Holdings LLC, a private-equity firm. Paul Johnson, who was president of DPT before it was purchased by Renaissance last year, will serve as group president of both DPT and Confab.

Johnson remains based in San Antonio, along with the sales and marketing team for both companies. DPT maintains manufacturing and research and development facilities in San Antonio.

No layoffs are planned for either company, a representative said Wednesday. DPT is now the lead company in Renaissance's portfolio of pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing operations.

REOC Partners, which was founded in San Antonio in 1974, now operates as REOC San Antonio, REOC Austin, REOC Corpus Christi and REOC Del Rio, according to a news release.

With about 70 associates, the company wants to expand its reach and already has discussed partnering with other firms throughout the state, Todd Gold, president and managing partner for REOC, stated in the release.

Retail

Amazon starts shipping at Schertz

Amazon has started shipping orders from its new Schertz warehouse.

The online retailer announced Wednesday that it shipped the first item, a vanity stool, from the 1.26 million-square-foot distribution center to a customer in Sugar Land.

According to a news release, Amazon hired more than 200 full-time employees to staff the Schertz warehouse, which is roughly the size of 29 football fields.

The company plans to hire more than 1,000 seasonal workers in Texas to help satisfy the busy holiday shopping season, the release reads.

The Schertz site is one of 89 so-called fulfillment centers that Amazon operates across the globe, the company said.